A conventionally known chip resistor (surface mount resistor) includes two leads and a central resistor portion (see Patent Document 1, for example). The central resistor portion is sandwiched between the two leads and bonded to the leads. This type of chip resistor is manufactured by using a plurality of reels. Specifically, a strip of a resistive material is wound around one of the reels, whereas a strip of an electrically conductive material is wound around each of other two reels. The strips are paid out from the reels while rotating the reels, and bonded together in such a manner that the strip of the resistive material is sandwiched between the two strips of an electrically conductive material.
In the technique disclosed in the above-identified document, a strip of a resistive material and a strip of an electrically-conductive material are bonded together by electron beam welding. Electron beam welding is performed in a vacuum atmosphere. Thus, to perform electron beam welding, after strips are placed in a vacuum chamber, the chamber needs to be evacuated. Placing each strip in a vacuum chamber and evacuating the chamber are troublesome. Moreover, after the strips are bonded together, the interior of the vacuum chamber needs to be returned to an atmospheric pressure, which is also troublesome. In this way, the conventional method of bonding strips by electron beam welding is not efficient.